Twine moistening and dispensing device



. v. F. MABLI TWINE MOISTENING AND DISPENSlNG DEVICE Filed Feb. e, 1945 Aprilo, 194s.

l//C TUR FTM/:5U 5 W6@ Patented Apr. 20,` 1948 UNI-TED STATES .PATENT @Fries VictorrF; Mabli, Tarrytown, N. Y. Application Ferrary 6, 1945; seriarivo; 57h-43a This invention relatesV to dispensing` devices, and more particularly to a twinejdi'spenserflor maintaining a supply'of twine'for'ioodwrapping in4 a sanitary con'ditionand adaptedto progres# sively wet lengths of the twine as the twine is withdrawn from the dispenser.`

The invention. is particularly" usefulv in the meat trade, wherein'vajrious meats. such asp'ot roasts, boned roasts; poultry, legs;of`1amb', etc., are trussed with' twine to maintain utheir shape. In order to effective1y'truss1such .meatl cuts', the` twine. is d'esirably wet "before'it is ti'edlaround .the meat; Y

Hitherto, noeffective means hasv been provided for wetting the. twine as it is" used for' wrapping the meats. Among various"expedients hitherto used is that of estimating the required onany o'ther'typie oineat product;

It'isamong'tle" objects ofl'this invention topr'o.- vide means vfor' maintainngia supply off twine, in asanitary cieamanufnandy condition :to pro.- vidaanitj'ary, clean and handy, twine .dispenser including means for` progressively dispensing twine v therefrom; to provide a *sanitary twine enclosingidispenser ineldingjmeans for progres'- sively'wettingjtwne Ias it' iswitlidrawn there.- from;A toi provide a. EWIQ dispenser* comprising a; unitary casing formed", to' maintain a supply sveljffwet" the `twine as," it is" withdrawn from, the'casing; Vto pTOVdea twine' dispe,ns'erlv compris-- ing` aiv unitary;- sanitary twinev enclosing casing,

havingV` a, twinezxcompartment, a: liquid coiipaid;Am meent," ar twine inletpassa'gaatwine outlet passage;` and1 means associated: with the.. casing for guiding tiief twinethrough liquid:- inthe liquid' compartment' asjthe *twine isV withdrawn: from the casing;- izo-provide ,sucha twine dispenser includingvv a coverI for the" liquid` we'll provided witlifmeansfr guiding the twine through liquid;

inithewell as the twine is witl'idrawn` from the casing; to providesuch a dispenser`n including cooperating means cn-the casing and liquidwell' cover. for-"aligning guidemeanson 'the Icover with" twine withdrawing passages; andA to provideI expedient' 3 Claims.V (Cl. 91-46) 21 n a simple; inexpensive unitary` and .sanitary twine" dispenser for prcigressivelyf wetting twine as itr is:withdrawn-foruse; n

v These vand eotheril doiectsg-` advantagesand .novelA L features of theninventionfwiizl b'e apparentzfrom' thel following?, description and; accompanying drawing; Inth'e drawing-1:

Fig, 1 is;afside-elevatiorrlview of=altwine-dis= penser according. to,V l theI presenti invention;` n

Fig. 2 a longitudinal sectional iview fthrough` thedispensernshown.inxligg1f;L v

Figs; 3- and 4- are 4elevatiomviews;` part1y--l in section of modified forms of twine guiding liquid well'covers.k y c Y Generally speaking according to thee' presen-tf invention; aV unitary v, casingf` isy formed v of any suitable material Y sucnlfaseglasss Vsynthetic resins; metals; or otherA Y suitable `n nattei-'ials.f Desirabl-y; the` casing: is. molded. fromv afrsi-iitalcle-v plastic having characteristics adapting it; forirelatively-y rough-usage, wf :l1',as1 being attractivein ap-4 pearance..4 Theicasingis formedfwith a-pair Yof wells,l 4-located adjacentfeachothern Oneof-A thel wells -forms a sanitary. enclosures-fol? 'asupply-of twine; such 4as aiball oftwine, .andthe-other,- welll isadapted=to hold a-supplyfcf liquid,l sucht as water, if. it isf desired, torprogressivelmwetthe twine as-A it: is. withdrawn, froml`v the twine' well;

30.7 Passage means are Wformed f in the. casing inten-` casing may be providedtwithsuitable meansV suoli4 asA slots Iadapted to holdraz'or blades. Orother. cutting implements for cutting oiidsiredll'engths of twine'` I V Referring to theV drawing, twine diiiipen'ser.v I0 Vis shown as comprising a' unitary. casing having:

a twine wellorzcompartment I5; a Well'rovr 'conifpartment 2D adapted to contain..liquid,,aftwine inlet 25 and a twine outlet 30. 4 Covers' I'I ancll'ly2l are' provided for wells I5v.and'20`.. The casing. may also be formedwith a rib or fillet;V |,3 prot vided with a" slot; 141 for receiving;arazor blade or^other suitable implement for'cuttin'g' oit de- 3 sired lengths of twine. The outer edge of pocket I3 is recessed as at I6 to enable a user to grip a razor blade inserted in slot I4.

Referring to Fig. 2, well I5 is preferably generally cylindrical in shape and provided with a neck I'I screw threaded to receive cover II. Well I5 is adapted to contain a ball of twine 35. Twine 35 is withdrawn from the center of the ball to prevent collapsing thereof and is guided through an eyelet I8 integral with cover II. If twine 35 is wound in a cone too tall to t in well I5, the cone is supported outside casing III, as on a spindle, and twine 35 is threaded through inlet 25 '4 by reason of its threading through eyes 33 and 34 to insure thorough wetting of the twine.

As twine 35 is withdrawn from nozzle 22, a corresponding amount is wet by passage through liquid 28 in well 120. The twine is thus progressively wet as it is withdrawn from casing I0. The amount of twine submerged in liquid 28 corresponds exactly to the amountrof twine withdrawn from nozzle 22. Therefore, the'end of twine 35 may be grasped and the meat wrapping done by withdrawing the twine from nozzle 22. When the wrapping is completed, the twine is cut, as by the razor disposed in slot I4. As distinguished from prior art expedients, it is not necessary to estimate the amount of twine necessary for wrapping a particular piece of meat and then A wall I9 separates twine well I5 -from liquid well 20, and a passage 2| is formed through wall I9 for guiding twine 35 from well I5 to well 28. Twine outlet passage 30 extends outwardly from well 28 through the front wall 23 of casing I0, and is formed with a nozzle portion 22.

Well is likewise desirably cylindrical in shape, although any desired conguration may be used. Well 20 is provided with a neck 24 having a partial thread `26 adapted to cooperate with a thread 2'I on a cover I2. 'Threads' 26 and 2'I are so related that only a quarter turn of cover I2 is necessary to connect the cover to neck 24. The purpose of this arrangement will be apparent hereinafter. Well 20 is adapted to contain suitable supply of liquid, such as water, indicated at 28.

Means are provided in operative association with well 20 for guiding twine 335 through'liquid 28 as the twine is withdrawn from well I5 through well 20 and out through nozzle 22. As shown in Fig, 2, this means comprises spaced lingers 3| and 32 formed integrally with cover I2 and extending downwardly to a point near the bottom of the well, Fingers 3| and 32 `are formed with eyes .33 for guiding twine 38. An eye 34 is formed integral with icover I2 between lingers 3| and 32 and along with eyes 33. As will be noted in Fig. 2,

twine 35, in passing between the two eyes 33 goes through eye 34. Therefore, vthe twine is limmersed in water 28 for a greater length of time than it would otherwise be if only a single finger 3| were provided with dispensing the twine beneath the surface of the water. Y

The operation of the described device is as follows. Covers and `I2 are removed from the device, and liquid well 20 is lled with liquid 28 to a point slightly below the level of outlet passage 22. A ball of twine35 is placed in twine well |j5 and the end of the twine withdrawn from the centerof the ball is guided through eye I8V on cover I I and through passage 2|. Thereafter, cover II is securely fastened to neck |I of well I5 to enclose the twine therein. Twine 35 is then guided, in sequence, through eye 33 of nger 3|, eye 34 and eye 33 of finger 32 and thence outwardly through passage 25. When cover I2 is place on neck 24 of well 20, eyes 33 and 34 will have their openings extending transversely of the well with respect to passages 2| and 25. However, when cover I2 is screwed on to neck 24 through interengagement of threads 26 and 21, only a quarter turn of cover I2 with respect to Well 2U is provided, which eifectively aligns eyes 33 and 34 with passages 2| and 25. When cover I2 is fastened to well 20, the portion of twine 35 between passages 2| and 25 is submerged at least twice beneath the water or other liquid is well 20 wet the same by hand. It is merely necessary to withdraw the twine from the dispenser as it is used and' in the exact amount needed. The remainder of the twine in well I 5 is not wet during this procedure, and this twine is maintained in a dry condition whereby it is effectively adapted for future use. The result is an eflicient and economical progressive wetting of the twine only in the amount needed for actual use in a given time. l e Y Desirably, the bottom of dispenser I 8 is Yrecessed as at 36 to receive a supply of sand, water, or other weighting material 3'I which is designed to make the dispenser weigh enough so that.v it will have stability upon a supporting surface. A bottom cover plate 38 may be provided for-space 33 to seal the sand, water or other weighting means therein. If desired, cover plate 38 may be provided with a. suitable plug. (not shown)n for replenishing the supply of material in space 35,

if necessary. V

Figs. 3 and 4 illustrate alternative arrange-V ments for submerging twine 35 in liquid 28. In Fig. 3, cover I2 is provided with a nger 3|! formed with a guiding slot 4| for twine 30.v In the same manner as described in connection with Fig. 2, when cover I 2' is turned a quarter turn to engage its thread 2'I with the thread 26 of well 28, slot 4| will be aligned with passages 2| and 25. In Fig. 4, cover 42 is provided withra rib 43 adapted to extend into liquid 28 and guide twine 35 through the liquid. As in the two previous examples, rib 43 will be disposed transversely with respect to passages 2| and 25 when cover 42 is secured to well 20 by engagement of its thread 4`|V with thread 26 of neck 24. The arrangements of Figs. 3 and 4 have an advantage over that shown in Fig. 1 in that it is not necessary to thread the twine 35 through eyes 33. It is merely necessary to engage slot 4| or rib 43 with the twine and then screw covers I2 or 42 in place.

Th'e described arrangement provides an effective means for maintaining twine in a sanitary condition pending its use in wrapping food products. The dispenser may be used either with a ball of twine or with a cone ol twine. If a ball of twine is used, the latter is fully enclosed within compartment I5 and the twine 35 is withdrawn from the center of the roll to prevent collapsing thereof. When the dispenser is used with a cone of twine and the cone is too large to fit within compartment I5, th'e twine from the cone is threaded through inlet 25 and at least that'portion of the twine in the dispenser is maintained in a sanitary condition prior to use. The dispenser may be used with or without water in compartment 20. When used without water, it forms a sanitary enclosure for the twine, protecting it from the action of the elements `and maintaining it in a clean and handy condition. When water is added to compartment '28, the twine is progressively wet as it is withdrawn from the dispenser which increases the facility with which the twine is used to wrap various meat products.

The dispenser i-s economical in use, as only necessary lengths of twine need be Withdrawn therefrom, as they are used, with the main supply of twine being m-aintained in a sanitary condition. The unitary casing I0 provides an attractive, easily handled `device for dispensing twine and may be readily manufactured by injection molding, die casting, or by any other suitable process, and from a variety of material such as glass, synthetic resin and other materials.

While specific embodiments of the invention have been shown and described in order to illustrate the principles thereof, it will be understood that the invention may be otherwise embodied without departing from such principles.

What is claimed ist 1. A twine wetter and dispenser comprising a unitary casing formed with a twine compartment, a water compartment adjacent thereto, a passage connecting said compartments to provide for twine to be withdrawn from said twine compartment into said water compartment and a passage opening externally from said water compartment to provide for twine to be withdrawn from said casing; a cover for said water compartment; spaced fingers integral with said cover projecting into said water compartment and formed at their inner ends with eyes to guide the twine through water in said water compartment to wet the twine as the twine is withdrawn from said casing through the passage opening externally from said water compartment; eye mean-s integral with said cover between said fingers to guide the twine therebetween; and cooperating means on said casing and cover effective to align said eyes with said passages when said cover is secured to said casing.

2. A sanitary twine dispenser comprising, in combination, a twine compartment; a water container; enclosure means for said compartment and container protecting twine and water therein from atmospheric contamination; guide means within said enclosure means effective to guide twine, from a supply thereof in said compartment, to said water container; means within said enclosure means in advance of said guide means and effective to guide the twine into said container; Iand passage means for withdrawing twine from said dispenser.

3. A sanitary twine dispenser comprising, in combination, a twine compartment; a water container; enclosure means for said compartment and container protecting twine and water therein from atmosph'eric contamination; guide means within said enclosure means effective to guide twine, from a supply thereof in said compartment, to said water container; nger means carried by said enclosure means effective to immerse the twine in water in said water container; and passage means for withdrawing twine from said dispenser.

VICTOR F. MABLI.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 131,786 Sargent et al Oct. 1, 1872 666,182 Cardwell Jan. 15, 1901 667,820 Esch Feb 12, 1901 924,683 Marshall June 15, 1909 1,203,294 Will Oct. 31, 1916 1,272,456 Kamphefner July 16, 1918 1,335,667 Doering Mar. 30, .1920 1,715,649 Filsinger June 4, 1929 1,810,007 Fischer June 16, 1931 

